How to change the apps in your HTC One M8 lock screen dock

App shortcuts are easy to switch out on the new HTC One, with one caveat

HTC was one of the first Android manufacturers to allow for app shortcuts in its lock screen, giving quick access to some of your most frequently used applications without actually having to unlock the phone first. That feature returns on the HTC One M8.

But what if you want different apps there? It's pretty simple to switch out.

When it comes to the apps that you see in the lock screen, there's really just one thing you need to know: They're slaved to whatever you have in the dock on the main HTC home screen. If you want to swap out one app for another — say, Gmail instead of HTC's default email app, just tap and hold on the app you want to remove. Then either drag it out of the dock and drop it elsewhere on the home screen, or drag it all the way to the top of the screen, to the "Remove" area, to get rid of it altogether.

If you want to have folders in your dock, you can, and they translate over to the lock screen as well. The only real difference is if select a folder from the lock screen, it'll just open it up to the home screen and not actually open a specific app that resides in the folder.

One final note on the lock screen dock — remember that it's slaved to HTC's BlinkFeed launcher. You're still free to install any third-party launcher, and you'll still have app shortcuts on your lockscreen. You'll just have to remember to switch back to the HTC BlinkFeed launcher if you want to change what's on the lockscreen.

For example: I use Action Launcher. If I want to change the app shortcuts on the lock screen, I have to clear Action Launcher as the default launcher, open BlinkFeed back up, change what's in the dock, then set Action Launcher as the default launcher once more. (If you're the type who uses a third-party launcher, it's probably not that big a deal, but it's good to know how it works.)
And that's it.